The repercussions of this devastating economic downturn have decidedly proven the significance of wealth. While those privileged enough to have such wealth remained relatively unscathed by the recession, most people will agree that its effects on the working class were debilitating. Many families struggled to pay their mortgages in a timely fashion, thereby accumulating large debts and ultimately finding themselves in a situation of economic dependence.

The existence of a wealth gap is not new- but I would like to demonstrate its magnitude I will briefly refer to Lifting As We Climb, a report which depicts the wealth gap for women of color. It reveals disturbing statistics, i.e. the median wealth of single Latina women is $120, as opposed to $41,500 for single White women. When you consider this data in times of current economic upheaval, it becomes clear why women of color are so disproportionally impacted. Their economic security is built on such shaky foundations and so losing a job or getting sick severely impacts their ability to make ends meet. Their lack of protection from such a topsy-turvy economy troubles me- and it is why I am concerned about the implications of stricter loan regulations.

I understand the need for stricter lending requirements after our current economic downturn. However, I have a problem with the way some lenders are interpreting eligibility for a loan. Most lenders require proof of income and verification of continued income for the next three years before they can approve a home loan. This is not unreasonable, but some lenders are considering maternity leave as a complete stop of income. This interpretation will deny pregnant women the ability to purchase a home and therefore accumulate wealth.

Let’s recap- women of color already have several factors hindering their ability to establish and accumulate wealth. Now, the sole fact of getting pregnant and having to TEMPORARILY leave your work, is grounds for rejecting someone for a home loan? What are these women supposed to do?

Again, I am frustrated that our society continues to base its rules and regulations on such a cookie-cutter image of what American families should look like. A woman being unfairly disqualified for home loans based on maternity leave is outrageous and discriminatory. How are single women supposed to raise their families and provide them with the stability, when we tell them that they need to wait until they are back in the work force (and risk being further subject to the whims of corporate economy)?

In her article on Change.org, Roxanne Mt Joy puts the issue into perspective, exposing the folly in the reasoning of these lenders:

Tightening up guidelines for home loans is definitely a good thing. I’m the last person who would ever say that lenders should be giving money to people who can’t reasonably afford it. The key word there, though, is reasonable. Using planned maternity leave to automatically disqualify a woman — especially when the woman has excellent credit, savings, and a commitment to rejoin her workplace — is not reasonable, in my opinion.

I couldn’t agree more! We definitely need to be more fiscally responsible with our lending, but let’s not do that at the expense of single and pregnant women please. Now is the time for the government to support women of color and provide them with the means to be economically independent.